Body parts - When to use tua/ teu, seu / sua?

Portuguese Questions Grammar
1

In the lessons for Body Parts 1, the Portuguese phrase for ‘She puts on mascara (paints her eyelashes)’ is ‘Ela pinta as suas pestanas’. But the Portuguese phrase for ‘Grandma puts on lipstick (paints her lips)’ is ‘A avó pinta os lábios’. Why is ‘suas’ used in the phrase with ‘pestanas’, but ‘seus’ is not used in the phrase with ‘lábios’? Is the use of ‘seu/sua’ dependent on the body part, or can you say the phrase either with or without the ‘seu/sua’?

Obrigada, Paula

1 Like
2

@pauladwg, it’s not dependent on the body part. The phrases can be worded either way, because the possessive is an optional element and in the absence of any extra context, the default assumption is that the phrases refer to the person’s own body parts. So you’ll probably come across both possibilities on PP :slight_smile:

2 Likes
3

Obrigada Joseph. Makes sense.

1 Like